In order to understand a social paradigm, we must further examine the history of said paradigm to fully comprehend why the pattern was initially created and still persists. Laker fans have dubbed themselves "Laker Nation" and it's all encompassing; whether you were born in Los Angeles or you're a "bandwagon fan" from Minnesota. Being that Lakers are one of the most successful franchises in the history of the NBA, people tend to view Laker Nation through a microscope with squinted eyes. The traditional perceptions of the paradigm from outsiders consist of entitlements, bandwagoners and flamboyance instead of love for the team and the game. From the outside looking in, a person would seem to agree with these statements at face value. However, without actually experiencing what it is like to be a part of Laker Nation, those statements are just pure ignorant assumptions. Lakers have a long standing success not only in the NBA, but in the BAA and the NBL as well: three championships among three different leagues. Such success has driven and motivated a passionate fanbase throughout the years. Unfortunately, such success has also bolstered lofty expectations on a yearly basis with not much room for commonplace. Laker Nation is a very open and opinionated entity. We demand excellence, simply because it has been provided before. Some may call it "entitlement," we simply view it as maintaining the standard. It is said that to the victors go the spoils, well, Laker Nation displays their championships with a huge sense of pride. Although some may criticize us of being gaudy, we know they despise the fact that it is not their team who has won as many championships as the Lakers.
The Lakers franchise has an extensive and storied history that actually predates the formation of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Lakers were founded in 1947, when Ben Berger and Morris Chalfen purchased a disbanded team called the Detroit Gems from the National Basketball League (NBL).